


Wish We Were

by perplexed (orphan_account)



Series: Florist/Tattoo Artist AU [2]
Category: Smosh
Genre: Chaptered, F/M, Florist Anthony, Fluff, Ian centric, M/M, Smut, Smut only happens in later chapters!, Tattoo Artist Ian, This is a companion fic to IHYMM!, Unconventional Relationship, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-17
Updated: 2015-02-20
Packaged: 2018-03-13 09:22:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3376265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/perplexed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>The drive from Sacramento to Los Angeles was a long one, or at least, long enough for boredom to settle in.</i>
</p>
<p>[Ian's side of the I Hope You're Missing Me saga!]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The drive from Sacramento to Los Angeles was a long one, or at least, long enough for boredom to settle in. Ian sighed from the passenger seat of the moving truck, looking across at his friend David, who was ‘affectionately’ termed Lasercorn thanks to the unicorn tattooed on his back, in the driver’s seat. They’d switched out half way, on account of the truck being hard to steer, (‘Why didn’t it have power steering?’ Ian wondered,) and even harder to change gear in.

He looked out of the window at the cars passing them and sighed heavily. He’d been planning the move for the best part of two years, and with all of his worldly belongings tucked safely into the back of a truck along with his best friend Mari’s things, he’d finally set out for Los Angeles that morning before the sun rose. Ian thanked everything that he already had good friends living in LA - though he was a social creature, sometimes making friends in new cities when you were covered in tattoos wasn’t easy.

In the truck behind them were the supplies for his and Mari’s new shop - a modest little venture between the two of them and Mari’s partner, Joshua, or Joven as he preferred to be called. The couple were driving the truck, having taken it in turns like Ian and Lasercorn, and when Ian glanced in the side mirror mari seemed to be giving an animated explanation of something while Joshua pushed his glasses up his nose.

Ian fell asleep, but was awake again by the time they pulled up to his new apartment complex and set about moving his furniture in. Between four of them, it took only half an hour to move his things, and another half an hour to move the couples’ after a drive across the city to Mari and Joven’s new place. Lasercorn departed to take the truck back to the local rental center and to take Ian’s dog, Daisy, back to his apartment before she tore up the back of the truck, he joked that he was glad he didn’t have to drive it all the way back to Sacramento.

Ian’s three other friends who already lived in LA had sorted some things out for him and Mari, like driving their cars down there and parking them outside their new shop, ready for them to be driven to their new homes later that day. The same gaggle of friends - namely Sohinki, who had a penchant for cutesy animals and DOTA, Wes, who cosplayed in his spare time, and Flitz, the best dancer Ian knew - waited around outside the new shop to help them move their things in.

Once they pulled up outside the shop, Ian excitedly hopped out of the cab of the truck with the keys in his hand. Reminding himself to get a set cut for Mari, he wordlessly walked up to the door and unlocked it with a click, then a creak as he pushed the door open. The shop was, by all accounts, a bit of a mess. It needed a good lick of paint and new partitions put in, but it had solid foundations to be built upon, at least.

Ian was glad for the help from his and Mari’s friends - even between him, Mari and Joven, moving heavy equipment and chairs wasn’t easy at the best of times, and having three extra pairs of hands would prove invaluable.

“Let’s get this sucker open,” Ian heard Mari call from the street, waving him back over to the truck. Making his way over using something between a walk and a jog, Ian unlocked the doors on the back of the truck and opened them, grateful for Joven’s help when he discovered that the ramp was heavier than he’d thought it would be.

They spent most of the morning sitting out on the pavement, shooting the breeze between moving things into the shop. Some of them smoked while others spoke, and all in all it was a nice atmosphere to be in. Ian knew he could get used to having such good people around him in LA, and was overall very contented and happy with his decision to move - even if the next week would involve a lot of hard work and staying later than working hours at the shop.

With everything moved out of the truck, Ian turned his attention to noseying around the shops on their street. Most of them were empty or closed, though there were a few that still seemed to be open, including the florists next door. He made a mental note to go and say hello when things weren’t so frenetic and busy for him, wondering if Mari would bake one of her famous cakes for their new neighbour.

\---

He fell into bed early that night and slept easily through the night. When he was woken up by his dog leaping onto the bed, Ian groaned. It was early, but he reminded himself that he had to take delivery of a tattoo bed that morning and forced himself from underneath the warm sheets.

Ian pet his dog, Daisy, for a few long moments, cooing affirmations at her about what a good dog she was for waking him up before his alarm. His new apartment was nice, if not a little too much like a showhome for his tastes. It wasn’t like it mattered - Ian was committed to his work and would be spending most of his time at the shop for a week or two anyway - there was plenty of time for repainting and redecorating when he had some downtime.

Instructing Daisy to hop up onto the bed, (mostly so she didn’t follow him to the bathroom,) Ian then padded through his apartment, nearly getting lost on his way to take a long, hot shower. He didn’t have the time to spend his usual half an hour in the shower, opting for a shorter one so he could actually be on time to meet Mari outside their new business and take the delivery. Ian stepped out and wrapped a towel around himself, ruffling his hair with a smaller towel until it stopped dripping on his neck and shoulders.

He decided to forgo breakfast that morning. There was a cafe near the shop, he could pick something up there. Or, alternatively, steal a slice of one of Mari’s cakes that she’d inevitably rushed home to bake the night before. Ian salivated at the thought of cake and shook the thought from his mind as he wandered back to his bedroom and threw some clothes on.

Next on his to-do list was to give Daisy a quick walk. Ian loved spending time with his dog and much preferred her company over a cat’s. When his mom had suggested he get a cat instead of a boisterous German Shepherd, he’d laughed and shook his head. You couldn’t play fetch with a cat, nor were they usually the most open to tummy rubs and cuddling on the sofa. When Ian whistled, Daisy came bolting through from the bedroom, eagerly waiting for her leash to be clipped onto her collar.

Ian walked her a couple of blocks and back, enjoying the early morning sunshine and taking the walk at a leisurely pace. He was a little chilly by the time he got back but thought little of it, just tugging on a grey cardigan when he got home. He unclipped Daisy’s leash and filled up her food and water, giving her one last pat on the head before picking up his car keys and leaving for work, at a record half past five in the morning.

By the time Ian arrived at the shop, the truck delivering their tattoo bed was already there. He felt bad about being late, but was grateful that they had waited for him. He offered to give a hand with moving it and five minutes later was standing in the back of the truck with his sleeves rolled up, the weight of the bed shared between him, Joven, Mari and the delivery man. They struggled to get it through the door which caused a lot of laughter, but eventually it made its way inside.

\---

Ian took it upon himself to go and get DIY supplies while Mari and Joven, along with Flitz who’d turned up just to lend a hand, cleared out some of the broken plasterboard and the like from the floor of the shop. He couldn’t think of anything more boring than shopping for paint and plasterboard, and he was thankful that he and Mari had decided in advance what they needed and what colours to get it in, because it meant he could get in and out of the peculiar smelling DIY warehouse as soon as possible.

He drove his way back and, as soon as he opened the door with armfuls of paint, had a Tupperware container thrust at him.

“I thought you could go and take this to our neighbour, I already did the rest of the street, but next door was closed when I made my rounds.” Mari grinned at Ian. She had her hair in a high ponytail, both sides of her head newly shaved. She had plaster sticking to her fingers, and streaks on her jeans where she’d clearly wiped her hands.

“Mariiiiiii,” Ian complained, putting the cans of paint down on the floor next to the new partition wall which had sprung up while he was away getting supplies. “Do I have to? I bet it’s owned by some elderly lady who’ll call the police at seeing someone like us,” he joked, dusting his hands together. “The plasterboard’s still in my car. Here.” Ian threw his keys at Mari and she caught them easily. “Go and do that, and I’ll deliver your cake to our new neighbour later.”

“Good boy,” Mari effortlessly teased. They were the closest of friends, having grown close over Ian’s five year apprenticeship in the shop Mari worked in, back in Sacramento. She’d been one of his main mentors, taking care of him and making sure he stayed in line - literally and figuratively.

Ian took his cardigan off, placing it on the railing of the spiral staircase before breaking open a packet of brushes and setting about painting the outside of the shop with Flitz’s help, while Mari and Joven worked on the inside. Ian watched someone emerge from the florist’s next door on a bicycle and he quirked an eyebrow up.

“Think that guy owns the florists?” He asked Flitz, getting a shrug in response.

“He might do, don’t judge the dude for liking flowers.” Flitz laughed.

Ian laughed back, watching the stranger retreat down the road.

He didn’t notice when the same stranger came back, looping past their shop to get a better look at what they were doing with it. He was too preoccupied with painting a wall in the back of the shop, alternating between that and drinking a cup of coffee idly. They had music playing in the shop, just at a fairly low level, but loud enough that they could hear it and had to talk a little louder over it to be heard.

Ian always had music playing wherever he went, if he could help it. Along with tattoos and, strangely, sketch comedy, his other passion was music. He listened to an inordinate amount of it and was the one who made the playlists that played in the shop him and Mari used to work in. Ian hoped that wouldn’t change now they had their own place - he liked making playlists and mixtapes, and enjoyed people listening to them even more.

A glance at the clock revealed that it was only eleven in the morning, but he decided that he should probably go and take that cake to their neighbour before one of their friends showed up and scarfed it down. (It wouldn’t be the first time that had happened.)

Ian washed the paint off his hands in the kitchen, grimacing at the dirty brushes left in the sink, before wandering through the shop.

“I’m gonna go and take this cake to our neighbour!” He called, and got a faint ‘Finally!’ in response. Rolling his eyes, Ian carefully avoided touching the wet paint on the door and let himself out.

He strode confidently into the shop but his true manner was given away by him nervously scratching the back of his neck. He hadn’t been expecting to see the attractive man from earlier actually behind the counter of the store. He smiled faintly.

“Hey, uh… I kinda just moved into the store next door. Sorry if we woke you up,” He grinned at the stranger, speaking after their greeting.

“Don’t worry about it, you didn’t wake me. I’m Anthony.” The stranger was smiling, and that put Ian at ease. He responded in kind, and held out the Tupperware container.

“‘M Ian, and I bought you some cake to apologise for any noise while we make the place pretty.” He put the container down on the counter, looking slyly over Anthony for a long moment. “My business partner made these, but she’s busy hanging things up next door, so she asked me to bring ‘em over.”

“Thanks! Say thanks to her for me too, if you don’t mind… Mind if I ask what you’re doing over there?”

“Oh, uh, this is probably obvious, and you’re gonna kick yourself for not guessing, but we’re opening a small tattoo place. Don’t worry, we’ll keep the noise down once the renovations are done.” Ian winked, (why did he wink?! He cursed his innate flirty nature around attractive men inwardly,) and made a swift exit after that.

Ian wondered if he’d see the man again. He hoped so - he could just tell that Anthony had a lot of interesting things to say, not to mention that he was tall, dark and handsome to a tee. Walking back to his shop, he once again carefully opened the door and stepped inside.

“What’s up with you?” Joven asked. “Don’t tell me you’re in love with the elderly lady next door already.” Ian chuckled.

“First off, the she is actually a he, as far as I could tell from looking at them. And they were really nice.”

“And handsome,” Mari cooed, wrapping her arms around Joven’s waist from behind and patting his tummy. “You’re like a kid’s book, so easy to read, Ian.”

Ian swatted at both of them and went back to painting the last wall to be completed, hoping he could go home a little early and play some video games that night instead of just passing out like he had the night before.


	2. Chapter 2

Ian found himself busied with righting the shop and setting up for their launch, which was coming up at what felt like the speed of a bullet train. He went home most nights exhausted from moving things around at Mari’s command, but he wouldn’t have had it any other way.

When the launch came around, he was nervous, namely about whether or not any of his appointments would actually show up. There was always going to be at least one no-show, Ian just hoped that one would be enough. If he’d been religious he’d probably have been praying for the opening to go well.

Much to Ian’s surprise, the opening went better than expected. All of his appointments showed up and they even had a couple of walk-in appointments too. He went home that night with aching hands and a broad smile on his face.

It was only late that night, when he couldn’t sleep, that his mind drifted back to the man who ran the florists. He was handsome, breathtakingly so, all lean muscle and slightly curly hair which had set Ian’s heart aflutter.

It wasn’t that he had a crush on the other man, Ian told himself. Crushes were silly, reserved for school children. It was… Just idle thought about a potential new friend. Yeah, that was it. Ian snuggled down further underneath the covers, eventually pulling them over his head and curling up on his side. By the time he got to sleep, the sun was rising, and he made a disgruntled noise at the light which streamed through a gap in his curtains before falling asleep.

The next day in the shop was quieter by far, but still busy enough to keep Ian occupied and happy with the way things were going. He’d just said goodbye to a new customer, who’d decided eventually to have a star tattooed on their back, when he heard Mari open the door and greet someone else.

When she called that Anthony was there, his heart fluttered slightly in his chest, though Ian told it inwardly to stop that immediately. Mari’s teasing tone about Anthony apparently bringing flowers left Ian flaring his nostrils and biting back a snarky comeback.

“Yeah?” Ian called back. He straightened up and elbowed a bottle of ink off the table. Ian tried to catch it and ended up just squeezing it, ink leaking out across his hand and leaving a big, green smudge which added to the colours already embedded in his skin from his ink organising pursuit. He rolled his eyes at himself and righted the bottle, wiping his hand on some paper towels to get the excess ink off before he appeared from behind the partition wall.

“Had an accident with a couple of bottles, dropped one, now I’m covered in it,” Ian explained to Mari, who rolled her eyes and patted his shoulder as she wandered past him, leaving Ian and Anthony alone.

“I’ll leave you two alone,” Mari teased, her voice fading as she walked through to the back of the shop. Ian again bit back a comeback, scowling at her hastily retreating back, before giving Anthony his full attention.

“Hey, man. Her cakes are good, right?” Ian quipped easily. He felt more comfortable in his own environment, more relaxed and at ease. “Are those for me?” He asked, gesturing to the bouquet Anthony was holding. God, he hoped they were for him.

Suppressing that thought as Anthony stuttered and then spoke, Ian smiled faintly at the other man’s evident nervousness.

“Yeah. Well, yeah, I thought they’d look nice on your counter. If you need a vase, I have plenty.” Ian held back a smile when Anthony all but giggled. Not only was he handsome, he was adorable in equal measure. Ian told himself, once again, that crushes were for schoolkids and to stop being silly.

“Aw, thank you! They’re really pretty, I love roses,” Ian spoke. He thought for a second then held up both of his hands, the backs of which were covered with large, red roses. He’d only had them done recently, so they were still vibrant and colourful, overpowering the green ink which was smudged across them. “You can probably tell, huh?... Hey, Mari!” Ian turned his head and called out to the woman in the back of the shop. “Do we own a vase?”

Hearing an affirmative response from the back of the shop, Ian nodded to himself. He took the flowers from Anthony when they were offered out to him, resisting all but burying his face in the bouquet to smell them.

“I should get back and actually open the store.” Ian turned his attention back to Anthony and he smiled softly. “So, uh… Same time next week?”

He was joking, right? Just a joke. Ian let his smile widen all the same, just slightly, his gaze flicking down to Anthony’s lips for a split second. He subconsciously licked at his lips.

“You’re gonna bring me flowers every week? Oh, you spoil me.” That came out a little more sarcastic than Ian had hoped it might. He quickly rushed to say, “Nah, all kidding aside, they’re really nice, I’m gonna put them in some water and put them right… Here.” Ian turned and held the flowers out, holding them just above the counter.

“Glad you like ‘em.” And, then, Anthony was gone, swinging the heavy door open and leaving.

“They’re pretty,” Mari said, reappearing from behind the partition when she heard Anthony leave. “What did loverboy say?”

“Oh, shut up,” Ian murmured, finally giving in and burying his face in the roses, taking a deep breath of their heady scent. “You’re just jealous because Joven never brings you flowers.”

“Oh, so you _do_ have a thing for the pretty little flower boy next door!” She hopped up onto the counter, sitting there comfortably and swinging her legs back and forth. She put a tattooed hand on Ian’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, secret’s safe with me, but you might wanna be a little less obvious about making goo-goo eyes at him if you don’t want everyone to work out that you want to plow him into your mattress.”

“Shut up!” Ian protested, but he was grinning. “If I didn’t have flowers in my hand, I’d tickle you to death.” With a swish, he walked behind the partition and set about finding the vase they apparently had.


End file.
